Circular-knitting machine



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E. EARTH CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 7 {1924. 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 VWTNEfiSES:

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E. BARTH CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 7 1924 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 ENVENTOR:

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Sept. 2 1924. 1,507,147

E. BARTH CRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE lf'ile d July 7, 1924 Sheets-Sheet 5 Sept. 2 1924. I

E. BARTH CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE Filed July '7 1924 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 WITNESSES! Se t. 2 1924. 7 1,507,147

E. BARTH CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE Filed July '7. 1924 7 Sheets-Sheet '7 Patented Sept. 2, 1924.

UNITED STATES ERICI-I EARTH, 0F CHEMNITZ, GERMANY.

CIRCULAR-KNITTING MACHINE.

Application filed July 7, 1924. Serial No. 724,745.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that-I, ERICH BARTH, a'citizen of the German Republic, residing at Chemnitz, Germany, haveinvented certain Improvements Relating to Circular-Knitting Machines, for which I have filed applications for patents in Germany on March 4, 1922; Great Britain, March 23, 1923; Austria, December 7, 1923; Czechoslovakia, De-

cember 21, 1923, and of which the following is a specification.

The present application is a continuation as to common subject-matter of application, Ser. No. 632,909, filed April 18, 1923, and abandoned July 7 1924.

The object of the present invention is to provide means whereby a flat piece of double-walled knitted fabric can be conveniently produced by means of acircular knitting machine. The two walls of the fabric are produced by the cooperation of two needle beds and by the use of two threads whichare crossed over at intervals from one bed to the other, so that the. material becomes tubular and, if the threads are of difierent color, striped.

I The invention consists in arranging the needle beds as well as the cam elements so as to be rotatable and so as to be rotated alternately and intermittently in the same direction. Thus, while no reversal of movement takes place, the knitting will proceed in a reciprocating manner from one end of the fabric to the other, the locks of the cam elements being reversed at each change.

.Fig. 1 of the "ompanying drawings represents a side view of the machine, (partly in section and partly in elevation, an

Fig. 2 shows the fabric produced thereby;

Fig. 3 is a diagram of the two needle beds, Figs. 4 and 5 arediagrams of the cam elements showing the position of the locks while the cams'are moving,

Fig. 6 is a View showing the lock-operating mechanism for the cam dial, and

Fig. 7, a view showing the position of the cam ring locks while the needle beds are moving.

Figs. 8 and 9, are diagrams showing different stages of the knitting operation.

Fig. 10 is a vertical section of part of the machine,

Fig. 11, a corresponding plan,

Figs. 12 and 13 are views of the different needles employed,

F ig. 14 is a diagram showing the cylindrical form-of fabric which would be produced by the usual circular machine, and

Fig. 15, a diagram showing the form of fabric produced by the machine according to'the invention.

Fig. 16 is a vertical section of the mechani'smf'or operating the locks, and

Fig. 17, a top view of the lock-operating mechanism for the cam ring.

A machine frame 1 carries a cam ring 17 and within the latter a needle cylinder 8, both being rotatably arranged in the frame and formed with circular racks 5 and 7 respectively. The driving shaft 2 is operated by means of pulleys'3 and carries two pinions 4 and 6 which mesh with the racks 5 and 7 respectively and which are loosely arranged on the shaft. Between the two pinions a clutch member 11 is arranged which is slidable on the shaft and which is prevented from rotary displacement relative to the same by a feather 9. Springpressed bolts 12 and.13, fitted in the clutch member, are adapted to engage recesses in pling either of these to the shaft according to the position of the clutch member. The latter is controlled by a wedge 10 which is situated between the racks 5 and 7 and which cooperates with wedges 21 and 22 connected to the racks one to each. wedge 10 has a projection which is in engagement with a circumferential groove in the clutch member, and it is guided by means of a slidableframe 14 so that it can be adjusted by means of the wedges 21 and 22 for coupling either pinion to the driving shaft. Fig. 11 shows the shaft coupled to the pinion 4 for drivin the cam ring 17. As the wedge 21 on t e rack 5 passes the wedge 10, the latter will be engaged thereby, the clutch will be released from the pinion 4 and engaged to the pinion 6, whereupon the needle cylinder 8 will be rotated until the coupling is again reversed by the engagement of the wedge 10 with the wedge 22. Thus the cam ring 17 and the needle cylinder 8 will be rotated intermittently and alternately each time through a complete revolution in the same direction.

The cam ring carries by means of two up The its needles 16 being adapted to cooperate with the needles 18 of the cylinder 8. The cam disc whereby the needles 16 are controlled is firmly secured to the spindle 17 so as to rotate together with the cam ring 17. The needle dial 20 is coupled to the cylinder 8 by means of carriers 19. Two bobbins 33 and 34 are carried by a rack 35 connected to the spindle '17 The take-up rollers 26 (Fig. 1) are carried by a platform 27 which is geared, by means of a pinion 28 and bevel gears 29, 30 and 31, to the needle cylinder 8 so as to be rotated together'with the latter.

A double-walled fabric is produced, one wall being formed by the needles 16 the Y other by the needles 18. Each bed, more over, contains two kinds of needles 36 and 37 (Figs. 12 and 13) which are controlled by different cam systems and which are for this purpose made of different lengths. One kind of needles work with the thread from the bobbin 33, and the other with that from the bobbin 34. The needles are arranged in groups of alternately long and short ones, as shown in Fig. 3. The cam systems are illustrated in Figs. 4 to 7. In the case of the cam ring, locks A,B, C and D, which are set by means of slides 41 and 42, determine by their position whether. the needles passing them are to be operated or not. A similar arrangement of locks A B C and .D is employed in the cam dial. The

locks are set cross-wise so that one group of short needles and one of long ones are operated at the same time. Thus in Figs. 4 and 5, which show the setting when the cam elements are moving, long needles are operated by the locks B and B and short ones by the locks C and C for knitting the different threads. The last needle in a group of the bed 8 is succeeded by the first needle in a v end of their stroke.

site direction relative to the fabric.

group of the bed 20 and vice versa, so that the thread goes alternately from one side of the fabric to the other. Thus, if the threads are of different colors, for .instance black and white, black stripes 44 (Fig. 2) will alternate with white stripes 43 at one side of the fabric, and similar stripes 38 and 39 will appear at the other side of the fabric but in a staggered position. The two walls of the fabric will moreover be connected at the crossing points so that the fabric will be of a tubular or reeded cross-section. Naturally the threads can be changed over at intervals so as. to produce a chequered pattern as shown in the lower part of Fig. 2.

Fig. 8 shows the cam elements near the As soon as the wedge 10 has been reversed by the wedge 21, the cam element will stop, and the needle beds will commence to move in the same direction while the knitting proceeds in the oppo- Before the change in the operation, the locks are re lever 48 the opposite end 49 of which is adapted 'to strike against a stationary abutment in the form of a roller 50. Another, separately pivoted lever arm '51, which also strikes agalnst the abutment, is geared to the double-armed lever so as to turn it in a direction opposite to that in which it is turned by its own engagement with the abutment. The dial is stopped with the two arms situated one at each side of the abutment, as shown in Fig. 6. As the dial begins to move, the arm 49 strikes against the abutment and sets the locks in their proper position for knitting with moving cam dial. Before the dial again comes to rest, the arm 51 strikes against the abutment and sets the locks for knitting with.

moving needle dial. The reversal of the locks which operated the cylinder needles is effected in a similar manner by means of wedges which cooperate direct with the slides 41 and 42. This is illustrated in Fig. 17. The pivoted lever arms 49' and 51 are geared together and cooperate with a roller 50' in the same manner as the elements 49, 51 and 50 previously described.

machine only in proportion to the desired width. ofthe fabric, the elements make a complete revolution between each change.

I claim 1. In a circular knitting machine, a vertical, cylindrical needle bed, arranged rotatably in the machine, a radial, horizontal needle bed also arranged rotatably and coupled to said cylindrical needle bed so as to cooperate therewith for producing a double-walled fabric, interconnected cam elements for said needle beds arranged rotatably in the machine, a driving shaft, and means for coupling the needle beds and the cam elements alternately to said shaft so that both will rotate intermittently in the same direction while the knitting proceeds reciprocatingly from end to end of the fabric, substantially as set forth.

2. In a circular knitting machine, :two needle beds coupled together so as to cooperate for producing a double-walled fabric, said needle beds being arranged rotatably in the machine, interconnected cam elements for said needle beds arranged rotatably in the machine, a driving shaft, two pinions arranged loosely on said shaft, circular racks meshing with said pinions one for driving the needle beds and the other for driving the cam elements, a clutch slidably feathered on the shaft between the pinions so that it can be engaged to either. for coupling it to the shaft, a Wedge controlling said clutch, and wedges connected to the racks so as to engage the clutch, controlling wedge for reversing the clutch at each revolution and cause the beds and the cam elements to be rotated alternately and intermittently in the same direction, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In a circular knitting'machine, two needle beds arranged rotatably in the machine and coupled together so as to cooperate for producing a double-walled fabric, interconnected cam elements for said needle beds arranged rotatably in the machine, a driving shaft, means .for coupling the needle beds and the cam elements alternately'to said shaft so that both will rotate intermittently in the same direction while theknitting proceeds reciprocatingly from endto end of the fabric, and adjustable locks fitted in the cam elements for changing the cam control in accordance with the direction of the knitting operation relative to the fabric, substantially as set 40 forth.

ERICH EARTH. 

